inscription · over the north door
limestone · 1847 · letterer unknown
the year is roman, the verse is roman, and the latin is what the builders' latin always was — a little wrong, but durable. it sits above the north door, where most arrivals do not look up.
the literal reads: who enters · is not the same · who exits. the custodian has translated this many ways over the years; none of the translations agree, which is fair to the latin and fair to the door. the meaning is durable too.
the limestone has yellowed where the rain runs off the cornice and darkened where the swallows nest. the V of MDCCCXLVII has lost its lower point. the rest of the date is whole. it has another sixty years before the next letter goes.
field-note · look up before you cross. the lintel is at the height the eye does not check.
see also · doors threshold stone custodian translated